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EFL seeks LNG assurance to withdraw case against coal plant
View(s):By Wasantha Ramanayake
The Environment Foundation Limited (EFL) has told the Supreme Court it will not pursue its rights plea against the Sampur Coal fired power plant if the Government could give an assurance that it will not establish any coal fired power plants.
EFL’s counsel K. Kanag-Isvaran told court that they had learnt that the Government had taken a policy decision to rely on green energy and in a bid to minimise the environmental impact, was planning to convert the Sampur plant into a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) power plant instead of a coal-fired plant as announced earlier. But he told the bench comprising Chief Justice K. Sripavan and Justice K. Chitrasiri that his client wanted an assurance.
The case was fixed for September 5 after Additional Solicitor General S. Rajaratnam informed court that some of the respondents were not represented. President’s Counsel Kanag-Isvaran said the twice-rejected deficient Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report presented by the Trincomalee Power Company, a joint venture between the CEB and the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) of India, had been approved by the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) due to political pressure.
He argued that if coal was used, the sea water required annually to cool the proposed plant in Sampur would be equal to the volume of water of the Randenigala reservoir while the warm polluted water that would be released back to the sea would destroy the rich marine biodiversity.
Mr. Kanag-Isvaran also said the people in Norochcholai were suffering from various illnesses due to the coal dust and fumes from the plant. “One can smell the coal miles away from the power plant,” he said. The EFL’s main complaint was that the company had distorted the environment clearance report and attained approval to set up the coal power plant in Sampur, despite the revocation of the gazette that released the lands for heavy industry was contrary to the National Environmental Act.
It argued that the TEC’s approval was unacceptable because it had on two previous occasions identified critical shortcomings in the EIA and instances of immitigable impact.
The EFL said it filed the petition to fulfil its constitutional duty to protect the environment and its resources as a citizen of Sri Lanka and also in the public interest to protect the environment, socio-economic conditions and livelihood of people to ensure that the company complies with the relevant environmental protection and pollution control laws.
The EFL alleged that there is an “imminent infringement” of their fundamental rights as the company and other respondents continue to set up the coal-fired power plant either in Sampur or any other place in the country despite such power plants that cause extensive damage to the environment.
Claiming that the the EIA report presented by the Trincomalee Power Company Limited (TPCL), which was set up to run the joint venture Sampur Power plant, misrepresented the environmental impacts, the EFL requested court to nullify it.
The EFL claimed that EIA also had not adequately considered multiple emissions of toxic fumes and dust and the impacts of the spillage of coal on the marine ecosystem and its biodiversity. The EIA is silent on the annual emission of 170 kg of neurotoxin mercury and of the impact of toxic materials such as heavy metals, which would cause kidney diseases, the EFL said in its petition.
The EFL claimed that based on the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) report, second respondent Central Environment Authority (CEA) had granted conditional approval but this approval had no legal validity as it had disregarded the flaws of the EIA and the issues the TEC had raised earlier.
Mr. Kanag-Iswaran PC with Wardhani Karunaratne and Gayani Hewawasan appeared for EFL.